The present invention relates generally to printed circuit boards and components coupled therewith, and in particular relates to a frame support for supporting components, for example, components that are to be coupled with the printed circuit board.
Processors and related computer components are becoming more powerful with increasing capabilities, resulting in increasing amounts of heat dissipated from these components. Simultaneously, package and die sizes of the components are decreasing or remaining the same, which increases the amount of heat energy given off by the component for a given unit of surface area. Furthermore, as computer related equipment becomes more powerful, more chips are surface mounted to the printed circuit board. As an increasing number of components are placed in closer proximity on the printed circuit board, more components are being placed inside the equipment or chassis which is also decreasing in size. Larger amounts of heat are being generated in a smaller volume of space. However, increased temperatures can potentially damage the components of the equipment, or reduce the lifetime of the individual components and the equipment. In addition, some complex components have become more susceptible to damage resulting from stress and strain occurring during testing, packaging, and use of the printed circuit board.
Heat sinks have been used to dissipate heat from the processor and other heat producing components within a housing. However, the overall size of the heat sink is limited by the volume constraints of the housing, and the footprint of the and/or the size constraints. Heat dissipation has been increased by using clips which physically hold a heat sink to the processor package. For some heat sinks, a spring force is used in coupling the heat sink with the heat producing component to maximize the amount of heat dissipated from the heat producing components. However, when assembling the heat sink with the heat producing component, the assembly of the spring clip causes the printed board to flex adjacent to the heat producing component, resulting in stress to the solder balls or connection between the chips and the printed circuit boards. In addition, rigorous handling processes, such as shipping and/or testing place additional stresses on the circuit board and/or the components, increasing the risk of failure to the structurally weak solder balls.
FIG. 1 illustrates another conventional manner in which heat sink assemblies 50 are coupled with heat producing components. A retention mechanism 52 is coupled to a lower portion 54 of the heat sink assembly 50. The retention mechanism 52 is disposed through mounting holes 56 directly adjacent to the heat sink assembly 52 and the heat producing component, which causes stress to the solder balls or connection between the chips and the printed circuit board 58.
Accordingly, there is a need for a way to cool components without increasing the risk of damage to a substrate. What is also needed is a way to minimize stress and damage to the connections between components and the printed circuit boards.